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Nemesis
The Nemesis Chapter is a Loyalist Codex Astartes-compliant Space Marine Chapter. The Nemesis Chapter is a Second Founding Successor Chapter of the Ultramarines Legion. There is little information on this Chapter in current Imperial records, save that it descended from those Ultramarines companies of the 22nd Chapter who fought alongside the then-Loyalist Night Lords Legion during a brutal purgation campaign of the Great Crusade. Like their ancient predecessors, the Nemesis Chapter specialises in needed Exterminatus actions. Chapter History The origins of the Nemesis Chapter can be traced back to the Great Crusade over ten millennia earlier, when it was still a part of the Ultramarines Legion, then known as the XIII Legion, before its unification with its Primarch Roboute Guilliman. Following the discovery of its Primarch by the Emperor, Guilliman quickly set about restructuring his Legion's operational doctrine and hierarchy to suit his personal tastes and style of leadership. While the newly espoused doctrine of structured adaptability became deeply ingrained within many of the Legion's chapters, there were some notable deviations from this pattern. Some few individual Chapters, through long-held preference or some quirk of supply, maintained notable strengths of non-standard equipment or personnel. One of the more noteworthy examples of this, was the 22nd Chapter, the so-called "Nemesis Chapter" -- long a hold-out of its Terran-born contingents -- which maintained large numbers of Space Marines equipped as Destroyer units, and was one of the few Ultramarines formations to routinely be deployed especially for Exterminatus operations by the Legion. Before its unification with its Primarch, the warrior brotherhood of the XIII Legion had, at that time, only in the solar decades after its initial raising on Terra, begun to display its achievements visually. But rather than take on a particular livery and iconography as a whole, individual companies who had come to prominence in a particularly important Imperial Compliance operation or campaign took on additions to their core Legion livery -- which maintained the post-Unification storm grey and gunmetal they had worn since Sedna -- to commemorate their greatest achievements. Those companies who had fought alongside the VIII Legion in the purgation of the Abhuman corsairs of the Cancerai Nebula afterwards bore black gauntlets, midnight blue helms and the ancient weighing scales and death's head icon of judgment in heraldic opposition of their Legion numeral, and took the name of "Nemesis" as their own. Such honours were claimed as the Legion's strength made visible. Following the end of the Horus Heresy, Primarch Roboute Guilliman was responsible for the restructuring of the Imperium's military forces as the Lord Commander of the Imperium. The vast Space Marine Legions would be broken down into numerous, smaller existing formations, known as Chapters. When the Second Founding of the Space Marines was decreed seven standard years after the death of Horus and the end of his Heresy, most of the old Loyalist Legions divided into fewer than 5 Successor Chapters, but the Ultramarines were divided many times. The existing 22nd Chapter formed the core group of Astartes for the newly formed Nemesis Chapter. Notable Campaigns *'Purgation of the Cancerai Nebula (Unknown Date.M30)' - Parts of the XIII Legion's 22nd Chapter purged the Abhuman corsairs of the Canderai nebula during the Great Crusade alongside the VIII Legion. Afterwards they took the name of "Nemesis" as their own. *'The Orphean War (992.M41)' - Following the immense bloodshed and the loss of nearly half of the Orpheus Sector in the Segmentum Tempestus to the Necrons, the Nemesis Chapter sent out troops to fight the ever-growing threat of the awakening Necron Dynasty identified as the Maynarkh Dynasty. Although they arrived too late to participate in the desperate Battle of Amarah, the detachment was requisitioned, like their brothers from the Red Seraphs Chapter, to enforce a security cordon around those worlds yet free of the Necrons' taint whilst the Imperium heavily fortified the neighbouring Eurydice Sector. Notable Nemesis Astartes As the Ultramarines 22nd Chapter *'Chapter Master Machon Phalaris' - Machon Phalaris was slain by Orks in the Ajetho System during the Great Crusade *'Chapter Master Eleon Iasus' - Later Chapter Master of the XIII Legion's 22nd Chapter. *'Captain Laches' - Captain of the 1st Destroyer Company. *'Captain Hierax' - Captain of the 2nd Destroyer Company. *'Captain Sirras' - Captain of the 223rd Company. *'Captain Lobon' - A Captain of the 22nd Chapter. *'Dreadnought Laevius' - Dreadnought of the 2nd Destroyer Company. Chapter Fleet *''Lex Talonis'' (''Gloriana''-class Battleship) - The flagship of the Nemesis Chapter. This ancient vessel was formerly known as the Chronicle of Ashes, a Battleship that once belonged to the traitorous Word Bearers Legion. This vessel was encountered by a task force of the Ultramarines Legion in 017.M31 in the wild and uncharted space of the Dominion of Storms. The Ultramarines overwhelmed the Traitor Escort craft and captured the Chronicle of Ashes. The Chronicle of Ashes was eventually cleansed, tech-exorcised and re-dedicated as the Lex Talonis, before being presented to the Ultramarines in 022.M31 and incorporated into their newly-founded Nemesis Successor Chapter. *''Cavascor'' (Strike Cruiser) - A Strike Cruiser of the Ultramarines Legion's 22nd Chapter during the Great Crusade. *''Glory of Fire'' (Frigate) - A Frigate of the Ultramarines Legion's 22nd Chapter during the Great Crusade. Chapter Appearance Chapter Colours The Nemesis Chapter's colours are dark green. A yellow Aquila or Imperialis is worn on the chest guard. As a Codex-compliant Chapter, a white squad specialty symbol (designating Tactical, Devastator, Assault or Veteran) is worn either on the right shoulder pauldron or one of the poleyn (knee guards). A black Roman numeral is stenciled in the centre of the squad specialty symbol, which indicates squad number. The colour of the shoulder pauldron trim indicates company number as proscribed by the tenets of the Codex Astartes -- i.e. White (1st Company), Yellow (2nd Company), Red, (3rd Company), Green (4th Company), etc. Chapter Badge The Nemesis Chapter's badge is a large stylised white skull centred on a field of dark green. Its former iconography during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy eras was an ancient scale and death's head icon of judgment. Sources *''Adeptus Astartes: Successor Chapters'' (Limited Release Booklet) *''Chapter Approved 2001 - Second Book of the Astronomican'', pg. 117 *''Codex: Space Marines'' (3rd Edition) *''The Horus Heresy - Book Five: Tempest'' (Forge World Series) by Alan Bligh , pp. 20, 70, 73, 80-81, 95 *''Imperial Armour Volume Twelve : The Fall of Orpheus'', pp. 40, 44 *''Roboute Guilliman: Lord of Ultramar'' (Novel) by David Annandale, Chs. 1-2, 7-8 Gallery UM Legion Destroyer.jpg|A Pre-Heresy Ultramarines Legion Destroyer of the 2nd Destroyer Company, 22nd Chapter, which numbered many specialised units among its ranks, most of which utilised unconventional weapons and tactics and became the Nemesis Chapter after the Second Founding File:Nemesis_Astartes_1.jpg|A Nemesis Tactical Marine of the 3rd Company es:Némesis Category:N Category:Imperium Category:Space Marine Chapters Category:Space Marines Category:Ultramarines Category:Second Founding